Laurier expert alert: Mother’s Day

May 7, 2020
For Immediate Release

Waterloo – Mother’s Day is Sunday, May 10. The following Laurier experts are available to comment on parenting and motherhood:

Bree Akesson is an associate professor of social work, associate director of the Centre for Research on Security Practices and research associate with the International Migration Research Centre. She is an expert on war-affected and refugee children and families. She is available to comment on refugee family issues in a variety of international contexts, including Afghanistan, Lebanon, Palestine, Syria and Uganda. Read more about her work. Contact: bakesson@wlu.ca

Lea Caragata, professor in Laurier’s Lyle S. Hallman Faculty of Social Work, is an expert on social welfare policy and poverty. She can comment on food security in Canada, issues affecting low-income single mothers, social housing and the democratization of public space. She is also available to speak about how the pandemic is affecting low-income families. Contact: lcaragata@wlu.ca

Cynthia Comacchio, professor in Laurier’s Department of History, is an expert on the history of families and childhood in Canada. She is available to speak about how motherhood and the everyday lives of families have changed in Canada since the late 19th century, as well as the origins of Mother’s Day. Contact: ccomacchio@wlu.ca

Ivona Hideg, associate professor of organizational behaviour and human resource management at the Lazaridis School of Business and Economics and Canada Research Chair in Organizational Leadership, is an expert on gender equality and diversity in the workplace and how prejudiced attitudes may undermine equality and equity. She has studied the role of benevolent sexism in the underrepresentation of women in leadership positions and the effects of parental leaves on men and women’s careers. She is currently studying the gender division of household labour during the pandemic, as well as the workplace experiences of Asian Canadians and Asian Americans during the pandemic. Contact: ihideg@wlu.ca

Laura MacGregor is an adjunct professor at Martin Luther University College and an expert on the lived experiences of parents, especially mothers, of complex-care children. She has studied the role of pastors and family physicians in providing support to parents of medically fragile children, and the ability for many mothers of children with developmental disabilities to understand their children’s unique, often non-verbal communication, and advocate for them in health care environments. She recently lost her son, who also had complex care needs, and is comfortable speaking about her personal experience of grieving during the pandemic. Contact: lmacgregor@luther.wlu.ca

Selda Sezen is an adjunct professor at Martin Luther University College and Muslim chaplain at Wilfrid Laurier University. Selda specialized in culturally and spiritually diverse parenting in Canada. Her research has focused on the parenting experiences of immigrant Muslim mothers in Canadian context and the impact of faith on their parenting practices. Throughout her career in the field of community mental health, Selda has provided counselling and spiritual care to children, youth, and adults. She has been developing therapy sessions and workshops aimed at raising awareness of mental health issues and improving the well-being of individuals, couples and families. Contact: ssezen@wlu.ca

Glenda Wall is a professor in the Department of Sociology and an expert on the cultural constructions of motherhood, fatherhood and childhood, with a focus on media representations and expert advice. She is currently researching the expectations facing parents when it comes to managing their children’s online lives and has recently studied how advice about early brain development has shifted the culture and experience of motherhood toward more intensive parenting; how beliefs about women’s paid work and child care have changed over time; and the implications of the resurgence of a focus on attachment in parenting advice. Contact: gwall@wlu.ca